ACCOUNTANTS' CONSENT
    

The Board of Directors
Optical Cable Corporation:

   
   We consent to incorporation  by reference in the registration  statement (No.
33-09433) on Form S-8 of Optical Cable  Corporation of our report dated December
13, 1996,  relating to the balance  sheets of Optical  Cable  Corporation  as of
October 31, 1996 and 1995, and the related  statements of income,  stockholders'
equity,  and cash  flows for each of the years in the  three-year  period  ended
October 31, 1996, which report appears in the October 31, 1996, annual report on
Form 10-K of Optical Cable Corporation.

                                                       /s/ KPMG Peat Marwick LLP
Roanoke, Virginia
January 29, 1997
    

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